360 deals or all rights agreements are deals that are offered by labels to artists and give labels the right to make money off of every revenue stream the artist generates money through. In the past major record labels (Sony, Warner, and Universal) all used to make all of their money from the sale and use of their signed artist’s music.

After Napster and the release of other streaming platforms, the major labels started losing money. In order to compensate for their loses they decided to sign new artists to 360 deals that gave them the opportunity to make money everywhere the artist makes money. Today most major labels will sign artists to a 360 deal. However, if the artist has a lot of leverage then he or she may be able to negotiate their way out of a 360 deal.

360 deals or all rights agreements might allow labels to make money in the following areas: Merchandising, sponsorships, endorsements, and live performance. Labels often times will 10-25% of what is made in each area, these percentages are negotiated.

Indie labels have been using across the board deals for over 20 years to date, across the board deals are similar to 360 in that they allow the label to make money everywhere the artist makes money. Typically an Indie labels all-around deal will sign an artist to a co-publishing agreement, exclusive recording agreement, and management recording agreement.